Railroad-frog



(No Model.) 1 3 Sheets-Sheet 1. .D. HORRIE. RAILROAD FROG. No. 452,672. Patented May 19, 1891.

WITNESSES //v VENTOH ile A TTOHNEYS (No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 2. D. HORRIE.

. RAILROAD FROG. No. 452,672. Patented May '19, 1891.

A TTOHNE YS (No Model.) I s Sheets-Sheet 3.

D. HORRIE.

RAILROAD'FROG. No.'452,672. Patented May 19, 1891.

WITNESSES: INVENTOI? By 7). A77'0RNEYS UNITED STATES DAVID HORRI-E, or;

PATENT ()FFICE.

ANTIGO, WISCONSIN.

RAILROAD-FROG.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 452,672, dated May 19, 1891.

- Application filed October 1890. Serial No. 367,393. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern: Be it known that 1, DAVID HORRIE, of Antigo, in the county of Langlade and State of Wisconsin, have invented a new and useful RailroadSwitch, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

The objects of this invention are to produce a simple practical switch or railroad-track crossing that will dispense with frogs and which will afford means to automatically lock the shifting frog-rail in connection with a main track and release it in a similar manner when the frog-rail is thrown to align with a side track or a track that crosses the main track. To these ends my invention consists in the construction and combination of parts, as hereinafter described and claimed.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures. Figure 1 is a plan viewof the switch mechanism in connection with main and side track rails that are shown broken. Fig. 2 is an enlarged plan view of the switch and the trackrails broken. Fig. 3 is an end elevation of the switch, partly in section, taken on the line 3 3 in Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a transverse section of the device on the line 4 4 in Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is a cross-section of the joined main and side track rails, taken on the line 5 5 in Fig. 2; and Fig.6 is an enlarged,broken, partlysectional view of one of the essential features of the device detached from other parts.

The adjacent rails A B of a main track A A and side or crossing track B B are sufficiently separated longitudinally to permit the location between their aligning ends of the switching device, which consists of parts that will be described. Abed-plate O is provided, which extends parallel with the maintraok rail A of a suitable length to project below the rail ends A B, which latter are securely j oined in pairs by similar devices,which each consist of a spacing-block a, that fits between the webs Z) of the rails, and is thereto connected by transverse bolts or rivets c,which pass through and secure in place the angleplates D.

As shown in Fig. 5, the angle-plates D are adapted to fit upon the outer surface of the webs b and base'fianges cl of the rail ends A B, the proportionate width of the lower portions of said angle-plates affording a foot 6 on each plate, which portions 6 are secured to the bed-plate C by rivets or other means. (See Fig. 5.)

The spacing-blocks a are tapered to fill the converging space between the adjacent ends of the main-track rails A and side rails B, so that these rails in pairs are held togeth errigidly and in like manner are affixed to the bedplate 0, which is seated upon and secured to the cross-ties E, that are embedded in the usual way to maintain the track-rails in position.

Between the pairs of rail ends A B a shifting rail F is located on the bed-plate O, and is thereto pivoted to swing laterally. The pivoted connection between the rail F and plate 0 at f is rendered substantial by providing two similar re-enforce plates G, which are shaped to fit against the opposite sides of the shifting rail and also upon the baseflanges f of said rail, the lower portions got the ITG-BUfOICG plat-es G being extended out side of the flanges f a proper degree to afford a wide supporting-base for the shifting rail F and their upper portions 9 bolted or riveted to the web 7L of the shifting rail, as shown in Fig. 4.

At a proper distance from each end of the in the web of said rail, which permit the guide-bars 1' to be inserted therein, said bars having their ends bent downwardly, so as to seat them upon the bed-plate O, to which they are bolted or otherwise fastened. The railF is so proportioned in length that it will vibrate freely on its center pivot f between the rail ends A B, which lateral movement of the rail is limited by the abutment of the flanges f thereof at one end of the rail F against the protecting end portions dof the angle-plates D, as represented in Figs. 1 and 2. At the opposite end of the shifting rail F two bracket angle-plates m m are affixed oppositely. One of said plates is prolonged in a lateral direc tion and bent downwardly and then forwardly to be pivotally secured to the draftbar H, that lies horizontally across the space between the track-rails A A and projects beyond the latter-named main-track rail, below which it is located and adapted to slide longitudinally.

The end of the draft-bar H, to which the bracket-plate m is loosely secured, is latershifL-ing rail F transverse slots 1." are formed ally slotted at its end to admit the end of the elongated plate, and, as represented in Fig. (3, this end portion of the bracket-plate m. is provided with an elongated aperture m through which the connecting-pin n is inserted.

Upon the end portion of the draft-bar H, above the slotted end of the bracket-plate m, the perforated end of the tripping-bar 0 is secured by the pin 12, which is thus adapted to retain the bracket-plate and tripping-bar in alignment and substantially parallel, as the tripping-bar is bent fiatwise into form which nearly corresponds to that of the bracket-plate.

On the bracket-plate m, at a proper distance from the main-track rail A, the bellcrank-shaped latch-dog p is pivoted between upright ears on the bracket-plate. The lower 1i1nb of said dog, which extends toward the rail A, is provided with a depending toe 1), that has a latching engagement with the bedplate 0 by its loose passage through the plate m, there being an aligning orifice made for its reception in the body of the plate and an aperture in the bed-plate, as shown in Figs. 3 and 6, this locking engagement taking place only when the shifting rail F is in alignment with the main-track rails A, and so forms a continuous main track. The uprightlimbp of the latch-dog p is pivoted to the adjacent end of the. trigping-bar 0, so that the longitudinal movement of the draft-bar II will rock the latch-dog and lock or release the shifting rail F, as may be desired.

The end portion of the draft-bar II, which projects below the main-track rail A, is bent upwardly and outwardly a proper distance outside of the rail, and is laterally slotted at its terminal end to receive and be loosely secured to the end of one limb of thehorizontal bell-cran k lever r, which latter is supported to rock in a horizontal plane by the bracket-arm s, to which it is pivotally secured at the junction of its limbs. The remaining limb of the bell-crank lever r is outwardly projected and is jointed to a connecting-rod I, that is shown broken, but may be extended parallel with the main-track rail A to be connected by its other end to a switch-stand of any approved con struction, (not shown,) which is adapted to move the rod I horizontally and longitudinally when manipulated, whereby the shifting rail F may be set to align with the maiutrack ails A or crossing side-track rails B. The tripping-bar 0, by reason of its secure attachment to the end of the draft-bar 11', will rock the latch-dogp and releasethe dog, after which the pin a will strike the end of the slot m in the bracket-plate 7H, and thus move the rail F toward the side tracks B.

It will be evident that it a duplicate shifting device is provided where the extension of the crossing side-track rails 13 B will engage the main-track rails A A said duplicate mechanism will, in conjunction with the switch mechanism shown and described, af-

l'ord means to cross a main track with another track or connect a main track with a side track without the use of rigid frogs.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. Thecombinatiomwithashiftingrail pivoted on a bed-plate to swing laterally and align with main-track rails or side-track rails, of a transverse draft-bar, a tripping-bar, a latch-dog, an elongated bracket-plate which the latch-dog is pivoted upon, and a device that is adapted to slide the draft-bar longitudinally, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination, with main-track rails that are laterally connected to side-track rails in pairs at their ends, side-track rails, and a bed-plate extending between the paired rails, of a centrally-pivoted'shifting rail on the bedplate, re-cnforee plates secured on the shifting rail opposite its center pivot, a bracketplate on the rail end, having a latch-hole in its projecting portion, a bell-crank-shaped latch-dog pivoted on the elongated bracketplate, a tripping-bar pivoted by one end to a limb of the latch-dog and attached to a draftbar at its other end, a transverse draft-bar loosely connected to the slotted end of the elongated bracket-plate, a bellcrank lever pivoted by one limb to the end of the draftbar, and a connecting-rod jointed to the other limb of the draft-bar, substantially as set forth.

3. The combination, with two laterallyjoincd pairs of main and side track rails,a bedplate extending between said rails, a centrallypivoted shifting rail, re-enforce plates secured near the center of said shifting rail, and guide-bars transversely located in slots in the shifting rail near its ends, of an elongated bracket-plate at one end of the shifting rail, a latch-dog pivoted on the bracketplate and adapted to latch fast to the bed-plate, a trip ping-bar jointed to the latch-dog, a draft-bar secured by one end to the tripping'bar firmly and to the bracket-plate loosely,a bell-crank pivoted by one limb to the other end of the draft-bar, and a connecting-rod jointed to the other limb of thebell-crank, substantially as set forth.

t. The combination, with a base-plate and a shifting rail pivoted thereon, of a bracketplate connected to the shifting rail, extending laterally therefrom and having a slot in its outer end, an angular latch-dog pivoted on the bracket-plate and adapted to engage apertures in the bracket and base-plates, adraft-bar, a trippiug-bar connected to the latch-dog, and a pin pivoting the draft-bar and tripping-bar and passing through the slot of the bracket-plate, substantially as set forth.

DAVID IIORRIE.

Witnesses:

H. G. BORGMAN, (J. W. MCFARLAND.

IIO 

